CIA Choice Is Trusted Adviser on Terror

ENLARGE

President Obama shakes hands with former U.S. Sen. Chuck Hagel as Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, far left, and Deputy National Security Advisor for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism John Brennan look on at the end of a personnel announcement on Monday.
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By

Siobhan Gorman

Updated Jan. 7, 2013 7:47 p.m. ET

In choosing John Brennan to be the next director of the Central Intelligence Agency, President Barack Obama is turning to a trusted deputy and architect of the administration's unconventional, covert war against radical adversaries.

President Obama nominated longtime counterterrorism chief John Brennan to serve as director of the Central Intelligence Agency and Sen. Chuck Hagel for defense secretary. Council on Foreign Relations fellow Micah Zenko duscusses what the nominations mean for U.S. security. Photo: AP.

In a speech at The White House, John Brennan described his nomination by President Barack Obama as the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency as 'the greatest privilege and greatest responsibility of my professional life'. Photo: Getty Images.

Chuck Hagel speaks about his nomination as Secretary of Defense, saying he's grateful for the opportunity to advance global freedom. If confirmed by Congress, Hagel will replace Leon Panetta. Photo: Getty Images.

President Barack Obama wrapped up the announcement of his nominations for Secretary of Defense and CIA Director by saying his picks understand the consequences of decisions made in Washington. Photo: Getty Images.

A 25-year CIA veteran who joined Mr. Obama's 2008 presidential campaign after leaving the agency, Mr. Brennan straddled the counterterrorism policies of two administrations, drawing on his experience serving under President George W. Bush when he became Mr. Obama's counterterrorism chief. Indeed, Mr. Brennan may be responsible for much of what both friends and foe cite as continuity in executing the war on terror.

That careful navigation from a Republican to Democratic administration speaks to what colleagues say is an apolitical approach to his work, but it also has sown distrust among some members of both parties. On Monday, civil-liberties groups raised concerns about his role in Bush administration counterterrorism programs and the Obama administration's drone program, while Republicans questioned his forthrightness with Congress.

Mr. Brennan, 57 years old, was named to the CIA job four years after he withdrew his name from consideration for the post at the outset of Mr. Obama's first term. At the time, he had come under heavy criticism from liberals for what they thought was his responsibility for the Bush administration's enhanced interrogation of terror suspects, including tactics such as waterboarding. Mr. Brennan and his colleagues at the time say he played no role in the program.

Avoiding a confirmation battle, Mr. Obama instead appointed Mr. Brennan to be his top adviser on counterterrorism and homeland security, which put him in a position in which he met daily with the president and frequently delivered bad news.

President Obama will nominate Chuck Hagel as his next defense secretary and counterterrorism adviser John Brennan to lead the CIA. Julian Barnes reports on Markets Hub. Getty Images.

Second-Term Cabinet Shake-Up

In announcing the appointment Monday, Mr. Obama turned to Mr. Brennan and spoke to him directly. "John, you've been one of my closest advisers," the president said. "You've been a great friend. I am deeply grateful for your extraordinary service."

Mr. Obama joked that Mr. Brennan was one of the hardest workers at the White House, recalling when Mr. Brennan did a news briefing from the president's Martha's Vineyard vacation spot while wearing a suit and tie. When a reporter asked then if he got any down time, he said "I don't do down time."

Similarly, Mr. Brennan came back to work a day after having knee-replacement surgery in August, his aides recalled.

In fact, he had endured a succession of knee injuries from years on the basketball court, another pastime that bonds him with the president. Still, Mr. Brennan's manner is so serious that colleagues were hard-pressed to produce a funny story about him at his retirement party from the CIA in 2005.

A graduate of Fordham University, he joined the CIA in 1980, responding to a newspaper ad. He served as an analyst and operator, including a stint as station chief in Saudi Arabia, then rose to top management jobs.

His time as deputy executive director of the agency, as the Bush administration's program for interrogating terror suspects was built, has drawn attacks from liberals who say he was part of the team that launched the program. His colleagues at the time presented a more mixed picture, saying the officers running the program wouldn't have reported to Mr. Brennan and that he had no authority over it. Others say he was in a position to raise objections if he had them, and they never heard him voice them.

Mr. Brennan says he always opposed the program. Fran Townsend, a supporter of Mr. Brennan's who held his White House job during the Bush administration, said Mr. Brennan had no ability to influence policy decision on the interrogation program when he was at the CIA, and she called that criticism "just silly."

Perhaps in an effort to pre-empt such concerns, Mr. Obama on Monday emphasized that Mr. Brennan "has worked to embed our efforts in a strong legal framework."

On Monday, Republicans said they viewed his statements on interrogation to be conflicting and that they intend to grill Mr. Brennan on his position.

Mr. Brennan has served at Mr. Obama's side for four years as counterterrorism chief through many difficult decisions, including the raid that killed Osama bin Laden.

He has been a chief driver of Mr. Obama's acceleration of the CIA's drone program and its expansion into Yemen. He also has been central in navigating the politics surrounding the administration's inability to close the U.S. prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Ms. Townsend said Mr. Brennan is "not afraid to call balls and strikes," recalling a time when he was trying to launch the National Counterterrorism Center and intelligence agency chiefs weren't following through on their promises to send officers there. He stood up in the White House situation room and called the leaders out.

While not known for his sense of humor, his aides say he has a dry wit. His spokesman Tommy Vietor recalled a time Mr. Brennan got a call after he had been working around the clock, and he was asked if he was at work. "No, worse," he deadpanned. "I'm about to walk into a showing of 'It's Complicated,' " a romantic comedy his wife had demanded he see.

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